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Faeland, officially Fáel, is a country in Western Europe. It occupies the entirety of the island of Faeland and its smaller surrounding islands, bordered to the west and north by the Atlantic Ocean and to the east and south by the Bay of Biscay, approximately 150 miles from both France and Spain. The territory of the country covers the entirety of the island and the surrounding islets, totaling 63,203 sq. miles and has a temperate seasonal climate. With approximately 42,387,200 inhabitants, it is a rather densely populated country for its size. The island of Faeland has been inhabited since prehistoric times; however, the population remained extremely low and sparse until the 3rd century B.C. Since that time, many different ethnic groups have established a presence. The result is an culturally diverse country that until modern times only rarely saw peace among its inhabitants. Faeland is a federal democratic republic comprised of nearly autonomous states, considered constitutionally to be sovereign and independent of each other. While the states do operate nearly independently, there is much cooperation between all the polities, and citizens of any state are granted full rights to travel to any other member state of the confederation. While the constitution provides the only official name as "Fáel" (the ancient indigenous name for the island), a constitutional act provided an official description of the country as the Federated Republics of Faeland in 1935, amended in 1955 to the Federated States of Faeland, to account for the re-establishment of a monarchy in one of the member states (cf. Kingdom of Faeland). Faeland is a member of the United Nations, but as a staunchly neutral country, has opted out of inclusion in the European Union. Despite this, it has adopted the Euro, and conforms occasionally to many of the economic practices of the E.U. It should be remembered, however, that where some states may conform, others may not, creating for a patchwork of economic laws (Oddly, free trade within the country largely negates the ill effects of some states' practices). While some in Faeland see joining the E.U. as a necessity to progress, no steps can be taken until there is unilateral consensus among the member states, which is not easily achieved. Name Main Article: Names of Faeland The earliest recorded name for the island of Faeland was listed by the Greek geographer Strabo around 20 A.D. in his Geographica as "Bounessos," believed to mean something akin to "mountain-island." This name, however, was completely fabricated and never seems to have taken root, as the local inhabitants always called the island "Fáel," from a local word meaning wolf. With the coming of the Roman empire in the 40s A.D., the Emperor Claudius established several colonies of soldiers on the island and created a nominal province called "Gallia Maritima" (Gaul-on-the-Sea). As the empire collapsed, however, Fáel resumed its prominence as a name for the island. The general chaos of the ensuing Dark Ages led to many political entities forming on the island, with relatively few incorporating Fáel into their names. From this point to nearly modern times, Fáel referred exclusively to the island itself and not the states resident. With the coming of the British in the early nineteenth century, the English name "Faeland" became an ever more popular term for the island, and has currency there even today, as English remains a lingua franca for the diverse population. When independence was achieved from the United Kingdom in 1925, the constitution referred to the new country as Fáel. It was thought that this would help forge a common link among all the various ethnicities that currently inhabit the island. Later, by further constitutional acts, the official description of the state was agreed to be the Federated States of Faeland. The wording of the description is meant to imply that the whole of the country is really not in itself a complete body politic, but in fact an amalgam of sovereign and separate nation-states. The federal government sees itself as the administrative apparatus of a federation, not a fused and unitary government for a nation-state. History Main Article: History of Faeland The History of Faeland can be divided into four major periods based on political developments. The first is the Antique Period, running from prehistoric times until the collapse of the Roman Empire in the west (some scholars put the end of the Antique Period nearer to the 10th century A.D. with the coming of the Vikings); the Medieval Period, following through until the early 16th century; the Colonial Period, which lasted from the first Spanish settlements until independence from the United Kingdom in 1925; and finally the Modern Period, marked by rapid growth and modernization that continues today. The Antique Period: Prehistory to ca. 500 C.E. Faeland has been inhabited since Neolithic times. In the 5th century B.C.E., the inhabitants began to display traits associated with the La Tène culture from mainland Europe. Coastal trade flourished between Faeland and its neighbors in what would become France and Spain, and some coin hoardes suggest that trade with the Britons may have occurred as well. Before the Roman “conquest,” urbanization on the island was almost non-existent. Rather, large ‘’oppida’’ type trading posts existed along the continental facing coast, and a handful of hinterland trading centers/tribal strongholds followed migratory paths to the interior. Legend reports that when the Roman emperor Claudius completed his conquest of Britain, it was Caractacus who suggested that the emperor settle his troops on the fertile northern coastal plains of Faeland. Thus followed the brief visit of Claudius to the island (the only emperor to do so besides Hadrian) and the creation of the new Senatorial Gallia Maritima province. Formally the entire island was made a province, but effective Roman control only slowly extended past the principal five military colonies of the northeast. Military operations into the interior were mostly of a preemptive nature, and never secured as strong a presence as the coast. Despite its Senatorial status, the province was often under the command of a Prefect, as the only military units were auxiliaries drawn from the colonists and assimilated natives, and eventually, a detachment of ships. The need for more men under arms was lessened further when Hadrian visited the island and ordered a second wall (the first being in Britain) constructed, which the relatively primitive tribal raiders found to be an affective deterrent. As a backwater territory, the tide of Christianity rose slowly in Faeland, to such a degree that it was largely considered a haven for pagans and heretics alike. The Aroës islands in particular were prized by monks for their remoteness. A bishopric was only created in Falx in 698 C.E., the island previously having been under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Nantes (in France). With the collapse of the Western Empire and the relentless Barbarian Invasions, Faeland became a last redoubt for many Gallo-Roman families. The attraction of greater wealth around the Mediterranean led to many a tribe passing over the island in their marches into the empire. While the numbers are difficult to determine, it is known that the population of the walled province increased considerably (estimates range from 30%-50% increase) during the 5th and 6th centuries. The Medieval Period: ca. 500 - 1512 At the dawning of the Viking Age, Faeland had remained largely untouched by the invasions, and its political and cultural landscape were still largely unchanged since Hadrianic times. In fact, it had become such a bastion of Western learning that it had drawn the eye of the Roman Catholic Church, who saw the island as seething with paganism. But before the new Bishop of Falx could begin to consolidate control over the island, the first recorded raids of the Norsemen began, which, like the rest of Europe, sent shockwaves through Faeland. The Pentapolis was assaulted on numerous occasions, but in large part managed to hold off its assailants. Rebuffed, the Viking marauders often turned to the easy pickings of the Aroës Isles, densely packed with relatively defenseless monasteries. The attacks forced many of the monks to immigrate to the mainland (primarily in what would become Dhíall). More Viking bases were established along the coasts adjacent to France and Spain. The history of the island until the middle of the Renaissance is largely a story of the strife between the Faelo-Roman settlements of the northeast, the native Fáels of the interior, and the recently settled Vikings. This coupled with religious strife (Faeland was largely non-Christian well into the 17th century, despite a crusade) left the island relatively unfettered by Continental affairs. The Colonial Period: 1512 - 1925 As the Age of Exploration began, interest in Faeland was renewed on the Continent. First Spain, via the Basque fishermen who set up small villages, and then England both vied for control of the island, only escalating as the two powers built up fleets that would eventually clash with each other. For Spain, Faeland was a stepping stone to control of the British Isles; and for England, Faeland represented a port through which they might equalize their colonial prowess to that of Spain, already established in the Americas. France only came in later, as an attempt to make a place for her shipping, and managed very modest success until the War of the Spanish Succession, when the Spanish surrender of the island to the British left France on Faeland with no allies. Though fighting was fierce and the French did hold out, the Seven Years War ended with the final ceding of all French territory on the island. Although Great Britain possessed only a few other colonies on the island, the 1763 Treaty of Paris saw Great Britain recognized as the sole authority in Faeland. Relatively peaceful seas and problems with her American colonies meant that Faeland saw little further development from the British until the end of the 18th century. Following the 1783 Treaty of Paris that evicted the British from the 13 colonies, Loyalist expatriates arrived in droves and helped expedite the colonial aspirations of King George III in Faeland. A capital, Georgetown, was founded, and a governor appointed to the Crown Colony of Faeland. The citizens of the colony had only been made more so by the American Revolution, and incessantly petitioned the throne to be made a proper part of the kingdom. To attract more nobles to the island, a Faelandic Parliament was established at Georgetown in 1791, along with a land-rich Duchy extending far into the under-developed highlands of Faeland. As France appeared more and more on the verge of collapse, massive supplies were cached on the island, and it became increasingly important as a base of operations for the Royal Navy. Immediately following the English-Irish Acts of Union, in 1802 the Faelandic Parliament followed suit, passing a measure that recognized the King of Great Britain as the King of Faeland. In the meantime, the Duke of Faeland was an absentee landlord, and had established many lesser nobles in Georgetown, granting them large estates in the highlands. In 1804 the English Parliament in turn passed an Act of Union, creating a Kingdom of Faeland along the southeast coast, and at once joining it to the crown of the new United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The Duchy of Faeland continued to exist as an extraterritorial fief of the U.K., but as time went on, it was treated more and more as colonial territory. Large tracts would be stripped from the Duchy to form Crown possessions for one purpose or another. After the Napoleonic Wars, immigration to Faeland from England slowed to a trickle. But, as the Great Famine swept Ireland, the Irish began to flood the northern shores of Faeland. It was this large Irish population that would help fuel independence from the U.K. in the immediate wake of the Irish War of Independence. The Modern Period: 1925 to the Present When tensions in Ireland flared into war in 1919, Faelish independence had hitherto not been a foregone conclusion. In the Pentapolis, there had always been a smoldering resentment of British rule. The United Kingdom, however, had been prudent enough to make a protectorate of the cities and largely stayed out of their affairs. In the Spanish speaking Caudia region, the local people had largely been left with their traditional institutions intact. By this time, the local Fáels of the interior had largely mixed with all the other populations, and at any rate had never been overly abused by the British government to foment rebellion. The British hand had always been strongest in the Kingdom of Faeland, where it ruled a strongly English population. But, for the most part, despite having spread their language across the island, most of the inhabitants were not of English descent. So, when the Irish arrived en masse in the Dhíall, they took their sentiments with them all over the island. Particularly to the farms of the Duchy (highlands) and to the docks of Georgetown and other cities of the kingdom. The I.R.A. had firmly established munitions caches in Dhíall, and, to a limited extent, in the Kingdom. Starting in 1921, partly to assist their Irish brethren, the Dhíall rose in revolt and established a Faelish Republican Army, which made direct for the Kingdom of Faeland, the seat of British authority in Faeland. Ironically, most of the fighting in this war of independence was localized to this area, which was by and large loyal to the U.K. Further insurrections occurred in Caudia and the Pentapolis, but these were nowhere near as violent. The Dhíall was mostly untouched by the war, though reprisal Royal Navy bombardments did occur. Caudia experienced a mass exodus of British nationals, to the point that the Spanish population fortified its border and simply waited out the war in a more passive role. In 1921, with the Anglo-Irish Treaty in place, it was obvious that the British would soon have more forces to commit to battle. The decisive moment arrived in 1924, when the forces of the Pentapolis sallied from their lands and marched to relieve the siege of the F.R.A. forces in Georgetown. Seeing that the situation could only get bloodier, all sides agreed to negotiations. March 10, 1925 concluded discussions with the Treaty of London. In the confusion of rebellion, several entities had declared themselves independent from the U.K. independently. Rather than negotiate with all of them, the United Kingdom agreed to grant total independence to the polities in federation, with special dispensation that the former Kingdom of Faeland be admitted to the Commonwealth of Nations. Faeland rejected this measure in an island wide referendum, and it was decided to abolish the Kingdom (King George V officially abdicated the throne) and allow a Dominion of Litus to remain. It would be allowed to join the Commonwealth peacefully, but not recognize the English monarch as King of Faeland, but as Monarch in the Dominion of Litus. Following British evacuation, the pressing issue for Faeland concerned unification. Having just ousted a foreign ruler, no one state would submit to the other. Summit after summit was held in Madrid, Paris, Rome, Berlin, and Washington D.C., as the leaders sought aid in finding a workable compromise. In the meantime, the various provisional governments coagulated and solidified into proper nation-states. The major exception was Litus, whose Anglo-Saxon population was convulsing under harsh treatment from its Dhíalleen military junta. Georgetown was continually rocked by terrorist attacks from one side or the other. Having formed a Provisional Alliance for the duration of the unification talks, all of the states swore non-aggression and mutual defense pacts with one another. The Alliance threatened to breakdown in 1933 when, in an effort to curb attacks in its own cities, the Pentapolis occupied northern Litus, threatening to evict all Dhíalleen in the country. As the opposing sides in Litus battled each other, some had based themselves in the Latin cities of the northeast, eventually the attacks spread there. Although looking to protect itself and restore peace to Litus, the move violated the terms of the Alliance. At another summit in New York, it was decided that the Dhíalleen Irish had a definite homeland in the Dhíall, and should return or peaceably take up residence in Litus. A coalition force entered the Dominion and held new elections. Knowing that the returns would be favorable to the Anglo-Saxons, a large proportion of the Dhíalleen migrated back to their pre-war homes. In 1935 a constitution was ratified by all the member countries creating the Federated Republics of Faeland. With the creation of the Ríocht Fíl (Kingdom of Faeland) in the highlands in former Duchy territory, the name was modified in 1955 to the Federated States of Faeland. This however is only a description, as the only name used in the constitution is “Fáel.” Faeland is a neutral country, and as such had no official involvement in World War II. Various free units, however, were independently raised, trained, and volunteered for service with the allies. In modern times Faeland has been at the forefront of social development in Western Europe, as well as taking the lead in more ecological energy production and consumption. Government Main Article: Politics of Faeland Faeland is a federal republic comprised of eleven member states. The system is highly decentralized, and the top level government functions more as a coordinating and administrative body between autonomous regions than a powerful government. Faeland's political system operates under a framework laid out in the 1935 constitutional document known as the Organic Law. By calling the document Organic Law, rather than Constitution, the authors expressed the intention that it should be understood as a binding cooperative agreement between sovereign nation-states. Amendments to the Organic Law generally require a three-fifths majority of the Diet; the articles guaranteeing fundamental human rights, the federal structure, and the right to resist attempts to overthrow the constitution are valid in perpetuity and cannot be amended. The Federal Chancellor, is the head of government and exercises executive power, similar to the role of a Prime Minister in parliamentary democracies. Federal legislative power is vested in the Diet and the e Directory, which together form a unique type of legislative body. The Diet is elected through direct elections in the various states, yet abiding proportional representation. The members of the Directory represent the governments of the eleven autonomous states and are generally members of their respective governments. The respective state governments have the right to appoint and remove their envoys at any time (how this is done varies from one state to another). Although laws binding on all members can be created, in general, the Diet discusses matters of finance related to funding the initiatives of the Directory, which coordinates internal activities and external relations (e.g. transportation, defense, diplomacy). Matters such as healthcare, education, taxation, etc., to some extent even military matters, are generally the province of the autonomous states within the federation. More recently, in 2006 Faeland and all of its member states agreed to bring the government "online." Since then, most elections and legislation can be accessed via the internet, facilitating near universal access to government data and services. Additionally, this has reduced the paper waste of the government enormously. Member States The Pages *'Federated Dhíall' - The Dhíall *'Caudian Republic' - Cauda *'Dominion of Litus' - Lito *'Republic of the Latin Coast' - The Pentapolis *'Ríocht Fíl' - The Midlands, The Highlands *'Democratic Republic of the Aroës' - The Aroës The Free Cities *'A Cidade Livre do Vila do Infante' - Vila do Infante *'New Norwich' *'Principauté de Nouvel Aix' - New Aix *'Santiago de Fuelaterra' - Santiago *'Respublica Falciana' - Falx Geography, Climate, and Environment Main Article: Geography of Faeland Coastal plains surround a central massif, and the northern of the two largest peninsulas is mountainous nearly to its coast. The highest peak is Mt. Ryan in the Riocht Fíl (Kingdom of Faeland), which is XXXX ft. The River Verdan, at 320 miles is the longest river in Faeland. The island has lush vegetation, a product of its mild climate and frequent but soft rainfall. Faeland's least arable land lies in the north-western and central regions. These areas are largely mountainous and rocky, with dramatic green vistas overlooking plains. The climate is generally one of cool winters and mild summers, with mild winters and warm summers along the southern Biscay coast. There is a lot of regional variation, however, as the island on its western shore borders the Gulf Stream. Education Main Article: Education in Faeland Education in Faeland varies widely. All member states are, by right, in control of their own educational systems. While this provides extreme variance in curricula, all of the member states enjoy high literacy rates and excellent school systems. The country has several noted universities, most dating from the 18th and 19th century, but a few from as far back as the late middle ages. Globally, Faeland is known for producing excellent graduates in the fields of environmental research, political science, linguistics, international communications, information technology, and archeology. Less glamorous but equally acknowledged, Faeland has also produced a large number of renowned Classical scholars. Economy Main Article: Economy of Faeland Faeland is one of the world's wealthier nations, with a high per-capita income, a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Faeland is a mixed market socialized state, ranking lower than the U.S. but higher than most western European nations on the Heritage Foundation's index of economic freedom. Since the early 1990s, Faeland’s economy has been growing rapidly with low unemployment and large government surpluses on the federal level. Today Faeland closely resembles Canada in its market-oriented economic system, pattern of production, and high living standards. The economy of the Federated States is modern and trade-dependent with growth averaging a robust 10% in 1995–2000. Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry, which accounts for 38% of GDP, about 73% of exports, and employs 32% of the labor force. Although exports remain the primary engine for Faeland's robust growth, the economy is also benefiting from a rise in the technology sector. Defense Main Article: Military in Faeland The national defense of Faeland is the responsibility of the Directory. Since -theoretically- Faeland is neutral, the top level command structure has not been organized very well. Each state contributes either money or trained forces to the collective military, with the chiefs of staff being the top level military commanders of the respective nations, headed by the current Chancellor. How well this command structure would work in a large scale conflict has not been tested. Usually forces sent on joint expeditionary forces are put under the command of an allied officer. Administratively, each state supplies a "regiment," independent in supply, command and training, to the national force. Historically, the Pentapolis has provided the bulk of the infantry, Dhíall light and mobile infantry, Fíl the Air Corps, Lito provides all naval support, and the other Pages and Cities provide smaller, specialist contingents. Although small, the army is highly trained, all volunteer, and well-equipped. Culture Main articles: Culture of Faeland, Freedom of the press in Faeland, and Education in Faeland Italy did not exist as a state until the country's unification in 1935. Due to this comparatively late unification, and the historical autonomy of the regions that comprise the island of Faeland, many traditions, customs, and cultural attributes that are now recognized as distinctly Faelish can be identified more accurately by their regions of origin. Despite the political and social separation of these regions, Faeland's internal intercourse is very affable. A native poet once wrote, "At home I am Cadiano (sic Caudiano), abroad, I am a Fáel. Literature The literary traditions represented on the island vary widely, and each region has its own attributes and volume of work that has uniquely contributed to the Faelish corpus. Even though there is a disproportionately high amount of literature produced in the Dhíall, a certain Faelish perspective can be found in the literature of all the states of the island. However, the hybrid flavor is relatively new and the product of recent unification, but which promises a boom in creative output from the country as it learns more about itself as a single culture. Languages of Faeland The term "languages" is used because unlike, Italy, for instance, Faeland has no unifying common root language that is used across all of its lands. The lingua franca of the nation is in fact an import: English. While there is a Fáelish language in use, it is hardly widespread and not used outside of the Highlands. Religion NOTES:the government is legally prohibited from recognising any religion (except for legacy statutes like those of military chaplains). Instead, it merely recognises religious organisations, according to formal legal criteria that do not address religious doctrine. Conversely, religious organisations should refrain from intervening in policy-making. Tensions occasionally erupt about alleged discrimination against minorities. Science Music Sport